Dream of Forever
by zdforrest
Summary: Princess Luna has been assigned a new Personal Lieutenant, yet there is something off about him. Something isn't right in Equestria, as an old foe she thought long destroyed has resurfaced and bent on revenge.


_ "Who are you?" Shouted Princess Luna. "What do you want?" _

_ "What I want?" Said the creature, teasingly. It was enjoying this, watching her squirm as the darkness began to envelop her. "I want to feed. Every last emotion, every last memory, every last happy thought. More and more, so delicious." _

_It's words repulsed her, almost as much as it's taunting movements. A shapeless form flowing around her, stroking her mane and chin, almost in a loving matter. She jerked away, only causing it to laugh with glee._

_ "As for who I am, you ought to have recognized me," It said, the gastly form beginning to take shape. "Were you so sure the Elements of Harmony had obliterated me?" _

_ "No..."_

_ The shadow began to solidify. Dark and twisted, taking the appearence of a horse. An alicorn. "Yes, my love," It said, it's voice dripping with poison. "Did you think you could forget me so easily? The one who gave you power? The one who gave you purpose?"_

_ "NO!" _

_ "Could you ever forget Nightmare Moon?"_

**Chapter One: Princess of the Night**

"...Wait, this is a dream?" Asked the filly, confused. She extended her hoof gingerly, the false reality rippling as if she had just touched the surface of a pond. Scootaloo had been experiencing frightening nightmares for two nights now. Princess Luna had observed her the previous night, but did not intervene.

But the Princess had a feeling to keep watch over this little one. Her hunch was correct when the nightmares returned. This told her that Scootaloo had a deeper fear that she needed to face, and that the poor filly would not sleep peacfully until she did.

"I assure you that you are asleep," Said the Princess gently. "But when you awake, the thing that frightens you most will still exist."

"Eh...The Headless Horse?" Said Scootaloo, shrinking at the thought.

Luna pondered for a moment. "Is the Headless Horse _really_ what frightens you the most?"

Scootaloo bowed her head, the worry as clear on her face as the moon was in the sky. "I'm afraid Rainbow Dash will find out I'm not as tough as she thinks I am." The words looked as if they were painful to speak, and even more to hear.

The Princess put her hoof gently on the filly's shoulder, feeling a deep compassion for her. "Everypony has fears, Scootaloo. Everypony must face them in their own way. But they must be faced, or the nightmares will continue."

Luna and Scootaloo both looked around as the world seemed to be closing in around them. Scootaloo was waking up, and it was time for the Princess to go. "_Face your fears!_"

Luna awoke.

A few days had passed since her conversation with Scootaloo. The filly had taken her advice to heart, and now slept peacfully through, as well as grown closer her idol, the Element of Loyalty, Rainbow Dash.

As Princess of the Night, her most important duty was to watch over the dreams of her subjects. Dreams were more than just images, or feelings. They were magic. During sleep, the dreams that come to a pony bring with it nourishment, enlightenment, and happiness, restoring and rejuvinating that pony for the next day.

But just as ponies are succeptable to fear and concern during the day, they are equally, if not more, in their dreams. If left unchecked, the fear will manifest, a malignancy that feeds on the needed nutrients their minds need. As it grows, it begins to dominate the dreamworld, leeching off the pony until they awake without rest, without nourishment, without happiness or joy. This is how nightmares were formed.

And this is what Princess Luna kept watch for every night. Every night she would enter the Slumber, a state of sleep where she would traverse the dreams of ponies across the kingdom. Only she was able to freely walk about the Dreaming. She was their guardian, and her watchful eye would never fail in the Dreaming.

But ponies were not without strenght on their own. Most of the time, a nightmare would be a one-time event, dismissed by the pony as a bad meal before bed, and the power of the nightmare would cease. It was only when the fear behind the nightmare continued did the power grow.

It was almost time to raise the Sun. Luna arose to join her sister, Celestia, on the balcony. The Sun Princess streached, obviously just waking from her own slumber. She smiled as her sister approached. "Good Morning, little sister."

"Good morning." Replied Luna. "The Dreaming is secure."

"That is good to hear."

Without another word spoken, the two took their places beside each other. Both of their horns began to shine as the ritual they have enacted so many times before envoked the powerful magic of day and night. Slowly, the moon began to fall in the west, while in the east, the sun began to rise over the mountains.

When the ritual was over, both alicorns sighed with releif. Not a complicated spell, but one that required great concentration. Celestia rose first, but noticed that Luna was having a little trouble.

"I am fine, my sister," Said Luna as Celesia helped her to her hooves. "Perhaps my time in the Dreaming taxed me more than I realized." As she said this, her stomach let out a deep growl. Celestia chuckled at her blushing sister.

"Shall we go to breakfast?"

"Yes please."

Breakfast was rather uneventful, considering most of their days. May of Celestia's advisors gathered around her, speaking of news and concerns from throughout the kingdom. Celestia did her best to listen to each of them while trying to enjoy her salad.

That was one thing that Luna did not envy of her sister. The politics and concerns of the world had always bored her. She could tell that Celestia did not particularly enjoy it either, but being the eldest, and the Princess of the Sun, the burden fell to her. But Luna would aid her in any way she could.

Luna looked back down at the parchment in front of her. She had been charting a new constillation and was nearly complete. She had gotten the idea to add more constilations upon observing her sister's most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, sitting outside the balcony of her Library with her telescope, charting the night sky. Twilight must have sparked an interest, because now many of the citizens of Ponyville began to follow in suit. Now they were raising funds to build an observatory, a gesture which touched her greatly.

Luna loved the night. She always remembered looking forward to raising the moon with glee, lovingly placing each star in a specific place. Stars told stories. It was her way of teaching. With the stars, she could teach, not just ponies, but all creatures across the world about history, science, even fantasy.

But few ponies enjoyed her night sky. She still remembers to this day the pain she felt, all those years ago, at the very first Summer Sun Celebration. The number of ponies who had come to watch her sister raise the sun had been overwhelming. They cheered and applauded celestia as the light peered over the horizon, bringing with it a warmth and happiness to grace these ponies lives.

Her own celebration, the rising of the New Moon, had equally recieved a grand turnout. With the Summer Sun now risen, it was Luna's turn to lower the sun, bringing forth the New Moon. She fondly remembers the gasps and awe of her subjects, applauding the night sky, her beloved moon and stars shining like thousands of tiny suns themselves.

Over time, however, things began to change. As the popularity of the Summer Sun Celebration grew, Luna's own celebration began to wane. Every year, fewer ponies began to attend, but this was not all she had noticed.

So few ponies saw her beloved night. While they played and worked during the daytime, they slept, and did not see her beautiful stars. There was no one to teach, no one to enjoy the stories the stars told, no one to marvel at the moon. She felt alone, her work wasted. The ungreatful ponies unapprecative of her hard work, all for them -

"Princess Luna?"

She started, only realizing now that someone was calling her name. She looked around to see the Captain of the Guard addressing her. "Forgive the interruption, my Princess, but I wished to introduce you to your new Lieutenant."

Next to the Captain stood a tall pegasus. Not overly muscular, but well built. He wore an officer's uniform, but did not look like any officer she had seen. His black mane seemed longer than regulation, if only by a little bit, and hung loosly across his face and neck. His blue coat had a roan pattern that almost made him shine, as if somepony had sprayed him with chrome paint.

"This is Lt. Wingless, your Highness," Continued the Captain. "Effective immidiately, he will be presiding over your personal armed guard." The Lieutenant bowed his head deeply, taking her hoof and kissing it lightly. The Princess regarded him carefully.

_ Wingless_, She thought to herself. _An odd name for a pegasus._ "Charmed," She stated aloud, bowing her own head. As she did, she had to force herself not to react as she became aware the reason behind his name.

While a pegasus wing was present on the left side of his body, his right side was as bear as an earth pony's. There was no scarring, no damage, no sign that there ever was a wing present on this side. A phenomenon like this was extremely rare, but not unheard of. But the sight of it still suprised her.

"Show him to his quarters," Said the Princess, turning back to the Captain. "And show him around the castle. Have him fit for a set of armor, and introduce him to the rest of the guard. I want him to feel welcome."

The Captain nodded and bowed. As they turned to leave, Luna couldn't help but notice the look that the new Lieutenant gave to her. It was strange, filled with...pain? Concern? She did not know, but it unsettled her. This new Lieutenant would take some getting used to. Without another thought on the matter, she returned to her breakfast, listening to her sister speak with her advisor.

"So the swelling has gone down then? Make a note to poperly label the hors d'oeuvres at the next Garden Party to aviod allergy mishaps in the future."

Luna couldn't supress a snort as she sipped her orange juice.


End file.
